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Friday, October 2, 2009

Author Guest Post + GIVEAWAYS

Hello Everyone! What a special treat it is for me to present to you today the author of The Virgin's Daughters, Jeane Westin. Jeane is an expert on ElizabethI and her love and knowledge of this queen is definitely reflected in her book, The Virgin'sDaughters-For all you Elizabeth-crazed-fans out there...you've got to read the book! (See my review here).
Have you ever visited Jeane's site? Oh, you've got to go! If you look up her bio, you'll see pictures of her Tudor cottage and learn about the way Jeane and her husband worked on it. And- besides her books, there's even a book club section and a Fun Facts about Elizabeth.

Today, Jeane has written a lovely piece on Elizabeth for Enchanted by Josephine.

Please welcome Jeane Westin...

Why I write about Elizabeth I.

Elizabeth Tudor, who reigned as queen of England without a consort from 1558 until 1603 is to me the most fascinating woman in western history.

The fact that she ruled alone makes her unique. Women were not supposed to have the mental powers to rule. People believed in a God ordained Great Chain of Being and women were near the bottom just above children.

Her council, Parliament and people demanded that she marry to have the guidance of a man and to produce heirs for the throne. She side-stepped them and carried on long protracted marriage negotiations with most of the eligible princes of Europe. In that way, she escaped marriage, which meant she had to share her throne with no one and escaped childbirth, which was very risky in those days of primitive medicine. And why wouldn't she? Her father Henry VIII had shown her how dangerous marriage was for a queen.

Here's an anecdote to show her shrewdness: her Parliament voted to demand her marriage and sent her a formal document. She replied that she appreciated their concern for her and the realm, but she would marry when she wanted to and added the inarguable statement that God would take care of the succession. In her words to Parliament, "herewith my answer, answerless."

She managed to have it both ways into her middle years. Courtships and gifts, long negotiations which kept European countries from attacking England, and in the end she gave them nothing. It is reported that after the Duc d'Alencon, her final suitor, left the palace for the last time, she wrote a lovely poem to him, wept tears on the pier waving her handkerchief until he was out of sight and then returned to her bedchamber and danced for joy. I think she was the mistress of holding out hope while never coming through...perhaps history's greatest royal tease.

She was brilliant, of course, probably a genius; she spoke many languages and whiled away winter evenings translating ancient Greek and Latin authors into English and back again.

She was athletic...riding, hunting, walking, dancing until all hours, but also sickly. The list of her illnesses is very long and from the evidence, I believe she was anorexic and perhaps, prone to nervous breakdowns. That she ruled so long and so well is a tribute to her stamina and courage.

Elizabeth hated war and sometimes delayed her decisions until the problem disappeared, strengthening her belief in indecision...maddening to her councilors, but wise in the end.

She wasn't beautiful, but she was extremely handsome, striking and commanding, taller than most women of her time with white skin, red Tudor hair and a slightly hooked Plantagenet nose. She spent money sparingly. When young, she dressed plainly, but when a queen she used clothes to display her regal self. She had more than 2,000 gowns at her death, but she was frugal even with them. She reused jewels, oversleeves, embroidered pieces that she liked, gave gowns to her ladies and had them recut and styled with the changing fashion...a kind of early recycled mix and match.

Several men truly loved her. Thomas Heneage, Christopher Hatton and other minor courtiers, but Robert Dudley, her Sweet Robin, was her greatest love. When she died, a letter from him was found in her treasures box by her bedside labeled in her handwriting His Last Letter, which gave me the idea for the book I'm writing now.

These are just some of the reasons I write about Elizabeth, but the greatest one is to search for the unanswered question: At heart who was she?

In my first book, The Virgin's Daughters: In the Court of Elizabeth I, from NAL, August, 2009, I write about her from the viewpoint of two ladies in waiting at the bookends of her life. In His Last Letter: Elizabeth I and the Earl of Leicester, to be published in August, 2010, I write from her viewpoint and from Robert Dudley's, trying to get inside the reasons she never married him, but continued to love him until the end. And also why her Sweet Robin stayed beside her even after he lost all hope of marrying her. I believe theirs was one of the great love stories of history...and still a mystery.

Thanks, Lucy, for allowing me to comment on your blog. It's always a pleasure to write about Elizabeth.

Jeane

Thank you Jeane!

Now... we have a FANTASTIC GIVEAWAY:

Penguin Books has graciously agreed to give away a copy of TheVirgin's Daughters to - 2 LUCKY WINNERS here at Enchanted by Josephine!!! Open to Canada and US only.

TO ENTER:

1 Chance: Leave a comment an tell me why you love Elizabeth
Get an EXTRA chance: For tweeting, posting,or placing this giveaway on your sidebarANOTHER chance: Become a follower of this blog (if you're already a follower,you get this automatically)

a FABULOUS Guest Post, thanks so much! I do have this one for later reading pleasure. I am reading the non-fiction Elizabeth's Women now by Tracy Borman, and no matter how many books I read on Elizabeth there is just so much to learn about her, I love studying her. She is a an awe inspiring individual and I envy those with the ability to write about her. I can't wait to read Westin's novel, and I hear she is already working on a sequel of sorts to this, regarding the Robert Dudley and Elizabeth connection. WOOHOO!

Great guest post!I love studying and teaching about Elizabeth I's reign and her extraordinary strength at being an unmarried Queen at that time. She must have been a genius! I'd love to read both books by Jeane Westin and I'll try to do it. Thanks Ms Lucy for this great opportunity. I'm a follower, of course, and I'll place your giveaway on my sidebar.

Ooh, enter me. I would love to read this! A wonderful post! And why do I love her? Because she outwitted and ruled those who would have ruled her in a time when it was virtually unheard of! Loving your pink background, Ms. Lucy!Bon weekend!Kirsten

Great post and a teaser as well...finding out that another book is coming out in August 2010...can't wait. Love to read and learn about Elizabeth because it is just so hard to believe that as a woman she lived the life she did during such a hard time for any ruler, let alone a single woman. I've added the contest to my sidebar...woo hoo

This is not an entry ... I just wanted to say I thoroughly enjoyed this guest post. Elizabeth is definitely one of the most complex and intriguing figures in history. I look forward to eventually reading this book!

I love Elizabeth because of her courage and downright stubbornness not to be cowed into getting married. I can't imagine the pressure she endured for decades to take a husband in order to make everyone else happy.

Hi :)Thank you for the great guest post with Jeane Westin, and thanks to Jeane for sharing.I love Queen Elisabeth (the First) because she was a strong woman leader who was true to herself and survived the life-and-death politics of her era.:)All the best,RKCharronxoxo

I love Elizabeth I because she was a very strong woman during a time when women were valued below chattel. She did very amazing things for her country, all which the help of a man. She was a feminist before there was probably a term for it.

I had never been a huge Elizabeth fan - I'm starting to warm to her as I read more about her now - but I really admire how she always fought for what she believed was right and followed it through. Great guest post - I love hearing why people enjoy writing about a subject. I am a follower and posted on my blog sidebar!

I have always been a huge fan of Elizabeth Tudor. Back when women weren't allowed to rule their country, their houses, their men, etc. Elizabeth did. She brought everybody to their knees. She fought for the respect she deserved, refused to marry a man, but married her country but wasn't afraid to love. She was the original.. single, successful girl :) Girl Power!

I am already a follower (I have been so bad about commenting on blogs lately but I have been catching up this week.. YAY!)

How can you not love Elizabeth, she writes about the queeen that I admire the most. The tudor history is so amazing and so interesting that you just can't help yourself wanting to read/watch/learn more about them.

Please enter me! She is a role model for all women of all ages. From the moment she was born, her life was difficult. It's hard to imagine how she even felt about her father knowing what he had done to her mother. She faced the hatred of being Anne Boleyn's daughter and then again as a Protestant during the reign of Mary I. When she finally became queen, she proved to be more than able. She is my hero.

I, too, think Elizabeth is fascinating. I have watched a few movie versions of her life and have read a couple of books about her, and the more I find out, the more I like her. I absolutely loved this post, it was very interesting and informative and the book looks great. Please enter me in this giveaway, I'd love a chance to win.

I also became a follower of this blog, and I tweeted this giveaway: http://twitter.com/Zibilee

Wow, my favorite period in history. Why do I like Elizabeht? Strong, powerful woman in a time when man treated women as possessions - she ruled and ruled well. She loved and loved well. She made England strong and mostly peaceful and prosperous.